2012 Statement

at the informal plenary of the intergovernmental negotiations
10 April 2012

Thank you Mr. Chairman.

I have the honor of making a joint statement on behalf of the G4.

Mr. Chairman,

You had given us the opportunity, in January, to introduce in more detail the rationale and the content of our initiative, which has come to be known as the “short resolution”.

We were encouraged by the strong show of support that the short resolution initiative, and the principles for which it stands, had received during the previous three debates. This support has come from a large, diverse, and cross regional group of Member States - big and small, from the developing and the developed world.

Like numerous other Member States, the members of the African Group share with us the conviction that only structural reform of the Security Council will ensure that the Council is adequately adapted to effectively meet the challenges of the 21st Century. This structural reform will include, at its core, the addition of new permanent members and new non-permanent members.

Mr. Chairman,

Brazil, Germany, India and Japan are bound together by a common vision of an enlarged Security Council that better reflects the geopolitical realities of the 21st Century.
This Council should be expanded in both the permanent and non-permanent categories of membership, taking into consideration the contributions made by countries to the maintenance of international peace and security, as well as the need for increased representation of developing countries in both categories.

On numerous occasions, we have reconfirmed our view that Africa should be represented in the permanent membership in an enlarged Council.

Mr. Chairman,

We the G4 countries are convinced that agreement on the two key principles of expansion in both the permanent and non-permanent categories and improvement in the Council’s working methods would enable Member States to finally move forward towards real negotiations.

We see the G4 short resolution as a vehicle towards this outcome.

Let us agree on these principles and then focus on the actual substance and modalities of how to implement this agreement in real negotiations. This is a realistic and results-driven approach.

Mr. Chairman,

The debates we have had so far, and surely today’s debate, prove that a wide coalition of Member States supports expansion of the Security Council in both the permanent and non-permanent categories and improvement of its working methods.

This is a reality that needs to be acknowledged. It also needs to be adequately reflected in the intergovernmental negotiations.

There are some ways of going about this task. As we have repeatedly stressed, streamlining the negotiation text Rev.3 is one way, to have a straw poll is also an option.
In this regard, we are looking forward to seeing the Chair’s strong leadership to guide us towards the next stage to start real and comprehensive negotiations.

We, the G4 members, are ready to work closely with you, Mr. Chairman, to achieve a concrete outcome during this session of the General Assembly.